How to Go Back to Normal Eating After Dieting

Written by Megan Ayala. Last Updated: March 1, 2021

If you have done all of the hard work needed to lose weight and the results have come, it is time to start looking at alternatives to sustain your results.

A lot of people struggle with this part of their lifestyle as it is not easy to move away from comprehensive cutting when trying to lose weight. Yes, that was a part of your approach, but you will want to change things up now to maintain your results.

To do this, it is time to look at a few essential tips that are a must when figuring things out.

Our Top 9 Tips for Getting Back To Normal Eating After Dieting

1. Create a “New Normal”

Studies show only 21% of all individuals that go back to normal eating and/or eat regularly will only consume enough fruits to stay healthy [1].

You start creating bad habits that settle in and ruin all of the hard work that’s been done. As a result, you have to understand this is one of the most important times of your life and it has to be organized the right way.

If you take the opportunity to create a new normal, you are going to have a much easier chance of doing things the way they are supposed to be done.

The old normal of eating anything won’t work. Your new normal has to be something you can sustain for as long as you want to without feeling down or bad about what you are doing. It should become second-nature to you as that is the only way to sustain it.

2. Understand the Power of Clean Eating

Clean eating is essential when it comes to keeping the weight off and still getting in enough nutrients to stay healthy.

These can include:

• Mediterranean Diet

This is a diet where you are going to consume a sea-oriented diet with a considerable amount of fish. This is healthy meat that is going to bode well for your health and will also offer a good amount of nutrients at the same time.

You can also include additional foods such as vegetables, fruits, nuts, beans, seeds, and olive oil.

It provides a unique approach to eating the right way and tends to work well for the average person.

RELATED READING: Mayo Clinic Diet Review

• Paleo Diet

This is a way to go about clean eating without restricting yourself as you might have in the past. The Paleo Diet is different from traditional dieting as it is more about your sticking to natural foods that would be common for hunters and gatherers in the past.

This can include meat, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds.

3. Portion Control is Essential

Are you taking the time to control your portions as well as they need to be?

You have to realize portion control is a must in this day and age. If you are not taking the time to reduce how much you are eating per meal, you will overeat naturally.

The benefits include:

• Reduced Consumption of Unwanted Calories
• Easier to Manage
• Spreads out the Meals

This is one of the best adjustments a person can make when they are trying to get back to normal eating.

If you don’t take the time to do this, you are not going to consume enough calories to stay healthy. Take your time and stay as patient as possible when planning out your portions. Try to spread the food out, so you never feel hungry during the day.

If you do this properly, you will have enough food to eat even though you are not overdoing the calories.

4. Get Your Sleep

This is one of the more underrated tips that you are going to want to consider as soon as possible.

In general, you will want to get your sleep.

This means you are going to take the time to rest as much as you can at night. Set a schedule and try to get at least 7-9 hours of sleep during the night (make adjustments based on what works for you).

If you sleep well, it is a lot easier to maintain a new normal. You are going to have a much easier time eating the right way because your body will get used to the schedule that has been set.

Take the time to focus on this and you are going to start feeling better as a whole. It is these adjustments that make a real difference over the long haul.

5. Understand Your Hunger

When you are hungry, you are going to make silly mistakes and eat too much.

This is why you want to start paying attention to the times you get hungry and/or when you tend to eat more than you are supposed to. Over time, you are going to start noticing underlying patterns that can be adjusted with a bit of patience on your end.

For example, perhaps you eat a bit too much for your last meal of the day? This might mean it is best to spread the portions and/or eat less during other times of the day to make sure you are still getting a reduced number of calories.

The benefits of this include:

• Easier to Regulate How Much You’re Eating
• Helps Time Your Food Intake

Don’t assume it is all going to work on its own.

Normal eating is difficult and it isn’t something that is supposed to be easy at all. You have to stay patient and make sure you are putting in the time to plan everything.

6. Keep the Carbs Low

Always make sure to keep the carbs low.

This is a mistake some people make and it should not be made at all. You want to cut down on the carbs but not completely.

Just eat enough to maintain your energy levels and then get the rest of your calories from elsewhere. A low-carb program tends to work for this reason.

You can continue to adjust to this type of change and it isn’t impossible to maintain for the rest of your life. Remember, the goal is to keep this going for as long as possible and this is a change that will bode well for your health.

RELATED READING: Nutrisystem for Diabetics Review

7. Keep Track of Everything

When you are dieting, it is easy to start reducing calories and cutting as much as possible. However, when you try to go back to normal eating, you will have to show a significant amount of care.

This is when many people make mistakes and end up gaining all of their weight back!

The best approach to take is to start keeping track of everything. The more you do this, the easier it is going to get to understand where you are making mistakes and/or what to do next. It will make meal planning a breeze too.

The benefits include:

• Easier to Notice Mistakes
• Easier to Taper Down Your Calories
• Helps Maintain Control

When you take the time to do this, you are going to stand a much better chance of reeling things in when you start erring.

Some people will eat too much from time to time and it is only their ability to track that keeps them in line. Your goal should be to look into this as much as possible too.

If you start tracking, you are going to have a much easier chance of controlling what you are doing.

8. Increase Your Water Intake

It’s recommended for men to consume 3.7 liters (0.97 gallons) and women to consume 2.3 liters (0.60 gallons) of water per day [2].

The reason for doing this is simple.

You will want to make sure the body is feeling full and hydrated all the time. A lot of people make this mistake where they just don’t consume enough water and start filling the body with empty liquid calories (i.e. a can of coke or a frappucino) when that is not the right approach to take.

Just look to increase your water intake and then maintain that level for the rest of your life. The more you get used to doing things, the easier it is going to become for you.

9. Don’t Be Afraid to Snack

A lot of people don’t realize this but snacking is a wonderful option when it comes to getting back to normal. It is easy to get into the mindset of eating vegetables, fruits, and/or other healthy foods without taking a break.

However, it is smarter to understand the power of taking a small snack from time to time. It is just a way to ease things up and keep pushing towards maintaining your new normal. Remember, your goal is to enjoy the journey for the rest of your life.

Take your time and make sure to get back to normal eating after dieting while having a snack once a week. It will help loosen things up a bit and you won’t feel as restricted when it comes to what you are eating.

RELATED READING: Foods to Eat at Nighttime to Lose Weight

Final Thoughts

These are the most important tips to keep in mind when it is time to get back to normal eating.

If you don’t do this, you are going to get back to where you were before dieting!

Whether it is portion control, eating the right foods, and/or consuming more water, it is these changes that will go a long way.

References

1. https://www.k-state.edu/today/announcement/?id=8989#:~:text=A%20diet%20in%20fruits%20and,amounts%20of%20vegetables%20a%20day
2. https://www.nap.edu/read/11537/chapter/15